Last week, I shared the immense impact that reading Purpose Driven Life had on me this year. On Sunday evenings for the next several weeks, I want to share some of the impactful principles in the book. My hope is that you would be encouraged, and also intrigued to consider reading, or maybe even re-reading the book as well.
The closer you live to God, the smaller everything else appears
-Rick Warren, Purpose Driven Life
We live in a culture where it is frowned upon to be dependent. Everyone wants to be self-sufficient, self-made, and self-maintained, no one wants to “need” anyone. Having a need is thought to be a sign of weakness, and in our culture, we insist on being perceived as “strong,” even if we are struggling and stressing to uphold this persona.
I am entering 2018 joyfully sober.
Today, as I thought about the coming year, the word SOBER kept ringing in my ears, so much so that I looked up the definition. Of the many differing definitions, this is what stood out to me,
Quiet in demeanor, Free from exaggeration, showing self control
Going into a new year, we tend to be SO LOUD. There’s so much to prove because no matter how great, or how horrible the current year has been, the next year must be better, bigger, and greater. So we eagerly pop off to our friends, loved ones, and followers, proclaiming all of the many things we are going to accomplish in the coming year. Yet, today as I pondered my own desires for 2018, I challenged myself not to be intoxicated by the possibilities of a new year, without being disciplined enough to count up the cost of my goals. Jesus said, Continue reading
Regret is looking for you. It wants to suck the life out of your hopes, g
oals, and dreams for 2018. It wants to remind you of all of the things you set out to do this time last year, but you did not accomplish in 2017. It wants to prove to you that you are not enough, and it wants to convince you that there is no use in even trying because you will end up with the same results.
What I want you to know is that regret is a LIAR. You are enough, you don’t have to stay chained to the should-haves, could-haves, and would-haves of your life. Your freedom has already been divinely purchased, and it is God’s will that you walk in your freedom, be released from guilt, shame, and defeat and begin to move forward. Continue reading
…The virgin will conceive a child! She will give birth to a son and will call him Immanuel (which means, ‘God is with us’) Isaiah 7:14
Today, I join my praise and worship with Christ Followers around the world, pausing and giving thanks to my Heavenly Father for sending Jesus, to ransom my life from the bondage of hopelessness, shame, and fear.
To ransom is, to free from captivity or punishment by paying a price.
Because of Jesus, I was delivered from captivity! Before I encountered Jesus, I was a hostage to my circumstances. Bound by the unjust things that had happened to me, and limited by my own ignorant choices. I was without hope, constrained by shame, and enslaved to fear. Thanks be unto God, because He did not leave me in that state of darkness and confusion. Instead, He sent Jesus, just as He had promised the Prophet Isaiah, some 700 years prior, that He would. It was the Father’s unconditional love that made a way for me to be saved, freed, delivered.
For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him would be saved. (John 3:16-17)
The past two weeks have been challenging, not so much for me personally, but for my loved ones. Two who received devastating diagnosis news about a parent, and several who have been in the throes of the fear and anxiety that just being alive can bring. I was in the middle of a blogging challenge, and feeling deep disappointment within myself for simply not being able to create the extra time to BLOG, while being present for my loved ones, investing time into the women’s organization that I lead, and accomplishing the daily responsibilities of my full time career! In the midst of my wallowing in self-pity for “just not being enough” to get it all done, I felt like I was jolted awake by this thought,
While it’s nice, maybe even “noble” to have a desire to inspire people I don’t know through my writing, it is a part of my DIVINE PURPOSE to care about, encourage, uplift, pray for, listen to, and BE PRESENT for those who are right in front of my face!
We value doors of opportunity that swing wide open to us because they confirm our greatness. Open doors give us courage, they build our confidence, and they affirm that we are valuable to others. An open door is an indication that we have been seen, that we matter, and that someone appreciates something that we possess.
If an open door affirms our value, then a cracked door just might make us question it. We may become Continue reading
Had you caught me several years ago, I would have had no problem writing about some experience that I thought was “Over too Soon.” I likely would have written about the unexpected death of my mother, how the loss of her tangible presence had devastated me, and how I was certain that at just 49 years old, and fairly healthy, she was gone “Too Soon.” Or maybe I would have kept it light and discussed some pleasant vacation, event, or moment that I desperately did not want to come to an end. Those options would have worked perfectly then, but certainly not now.
The idea of you precedes your conception. You were known before you were knit together. The Master Creator envisioned all that you would be, and He spared nothing, from the inside out, designing you perfectly.
When the Master Creator completed You, His Exquiste Masterpiece, He marveled at His own expertise, and with a loud voice He declared, “It is Good”. And just like that, You were complete. Whole. Lacking nothing. You were, as Perfect and Beautifully you, as you would ever be!
There was only one thing The Master Creator would leave up to you and me, and that is the faith to believe that this could even be. He designed you with the ability to choose what to believe and what to reject, and He determined that your belief would be the fuel to guide your steps. Continue reading
Happy November 1st!!!
I am so excited about the month of November! Last year, I participated in GG’s #30Layers30Days writing challenge on my social media platforms! It was an amazing experience!
I was so thrilled when I saw the prompts for this year in my email box! I am thankful for this space to share the experience with you all this year!
I am also a member of an amazing writing community called “See JANE Write,” so I am joining in on the #BlogLikeCrazy Challenge also, well actually more like combining the challenges:)! Find out more about the “See Jane Write” Community, and the #BlogLikeCrazy Challenge HERE !!
I hope you will join in! I will put the prompts below for you!! Be sure to use the hashtags -#BlogLikeCrazy and #30Layers30Days
Here’s to Today’s Prompt:
When You Promised….
Promises, promises are meant to be kept, so why are so many broken? It’s funny how committed I am to promises that I make to other people, but I have not always demonstrated that same loyalty to the promises that I have made to myself. Continue reading
Hope Notes 
